Steering-knuckle



H. W. ALBEN.

STEERING KNUCKLE.

APPLlcAlor-J FILED sEPT,15,1919.

-of the city of .DetroitMiny 'UNITEDISTATES TENT OFFICE.

HRBERT W. ALBEN, 'or DETROIT, MICHIGAN, AssIGNOR To THE TIMHEN-DETROI'I .AxLE COMPANY, ,OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A' CORPORATION OF OHIO.

' STEERING-KNUCKLE.

To allie/zomz't may concern Be it known that I, HERBERT W. ALDEN, a citizen ofthe United States, and aresident the county of` Wayne and State of ichiga'n, have invented-a new and useful Improvement in Steering-Knuckles, of which the following is a specification. v

My invention relates to steering knuckles for motor vehiclesand has for its objects to provide `for-simplicity and cheapness of vconstruction of such.devices,fto localize the wear on linexpensive parts, to'facilitate replacement Of `worn parts, to provide for lubricatiom-and to obtain other advantages.

The invention consists in the parts and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed. V

In the drawings, which form part of this specification and wherein'like numerals 1ndicate like parts in the several views,

Figure 1 is an elevation, partly in section, of a steering knuckle construction embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a View partly in section;

Fig, 3 is a section along the line 3 3 1n Fi l;

Fig. 4 is a top plan view.; l

Fig. 5 is a section along the line 5 5 showingsa plan view of the thrust member;

Fig. 6 is a view of a bearlng head for the end of the knuckle pin;

Fig. 7 is an elevation of the thrust member; and

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the sectional bearing ring, which secures the thrust mem* ber in position;

The drawings show' only one end of an axle, but it will be understood that the construction of the other end is like that shown.

Near its end, the axle 1 has a vertical hole which is tapered to lit the tapered upper end portion 2 of a cylindrical knuckle pin 3. The upper end ofthe knuckle pin 3 projects above the axle' 1 and is threaded and pro- -vided with a nut 4:, which bears against the specificati@ of Lettersratent. Patented Mar, 15, 1921, 'Application med september 15,1919. serial No. 323,332.

cylindrical to form a journal bearing for.

the knuckle pin and whose outer surface is tapered to fit the bore of the steering knuckle. This bearing head on the lower end Of the,l knuckle pin bears on and is supported by a disk 8, which is held in place in the steering knuckle by means of a 'sectional ring 9 mounted in an annular groove 10 in the bore of the steering knuckle', and which relieves-the knuckle pin of the load which its tapered upper end portion receives from the axle. The under side of the disk and the inner surface of the ring are beveled. The load seats the disk more firmly in the ring and presses the ring into its groove. The ring is preferably made in four pieces, as shown in Fig. 8, so that it can be inserted easily in the groove and removed therefrom. A convenient method of making such sectional ring is to start with a rigid integral ring of proper shape and size to fit the groove and cut parallel chordal slots therein and then shatter the ring along said slots by a sharp blow with a hammer. The divisions must be such that the chord of the outer surface of each section is less than the diameter of the bore of the steering knuckle and the chord of the last section to be inserted is not greater than the inner chord of the space into which said section is placed. A resilient split ring might be used, but it could not be easily removed.

The steering knuckle pin has helical Oil grooves 11 in its outer surface. An oil passageway 12 extends through the knuckle pin and bearing head. The upper end portion of the wall of the passageway 12 is threaded to receive the threaded end of a tube 13, which leads to a grease cup, or an oil line or othervsource of lubricant supply. The disk 8 has oil grooves 14 across its upper face. The intersection of these grooves communicates with the oil passageway 12 in the steering knuckle pin. The joint between the disk and the bore of the steering knuckle is Oil tight.

The steering knuckle has a horizontal spindle 15 projecting therefrom on which the vehicle lwheel is mounted. A boss 16 on said steering knuckle has a hole 17 there- 1 member is a lu 20 formed on the underside The steering knuckle is provided with a limit stop preferably in the form of an arcuate late 18 located in roximity to the undersi e of the axle andp secured to the boss by bolts or screws 19, the outer portion 21 of said plate being adapted to bring up against the axle at the limit of its angular movement. For this purpose, the outer end of said late ma be extended horizontally so as to e'ar agalnst a downwardly projecting portion 20 ofv the axle, as illustrated in the drawings, ,or said outer end may be turned up 1n position to -bear against the face of the axle. Underneath the plate 18, but normally clear thereof, is a member that extends from the body of the axle. In the j construction illustrated, this projecting of the axle an provided with a horizontal flange that projects toward the end of the axle and is spaced far enough from the body of the axle to provide a recess to accommodate said plate 18. The plate 18 rotates in the recess when the steering knuckle is rotated, but no steering angle is large enou h to cause the plate to leave the recess and isengage the steering knuckle.

When the steering rod is disconnected, the steering knuckle can be turned far enough to cause the locking plate to clear the axle, as is shown in the dot and dash lines in ig. 4) and then the knuckle pincan be dis- 'i en aged from the knuckle by jacking up the ax e.

The construction shown is. capable of withstanding hard usage and is adapted for use inheavy vehicles. tis capable ofcarrying heavy loads; it is easily assembledand ldismantled and all of the parts subject to wear can be replaced separately and conveniently. 0

It is evldent that numerous changes may be made without departing from my invention and 'do not wish to be limited to the precise construction shown and described.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with an axle having an upwardly tapering hole therein, of a knuckle pin having a taplered upper portion adapted to fit into said ole and a threaded upper end portion projecting above said axle, a nut on said threaded portion and a hollow steering knuckle adapted to receive said knuckle pin, said knuckle having a hardened disk removabl mounted therein to constitute a bearing or the end of said pin.

2. 'llhevcombination with an axle having` an upwardly tapering hole in the end portion, of a knuckle pin extending downwardly from said axle and having a tapered upper end ortion adapted to lit in said hole, and a ollow steering knuckle adapted to receive said knuckle in, said knuckle having a radially groovedP end bearing disk for said knuckle pin and said knuckle pin having a passa wayjextending longitudinally through 1t for lubricating said end bearing.

3. A hollow knuckle having an annular groove in the bore thereof, a sectional ring in said groove, a thrust member seated on said ring, and a knuckle in in said knuckle.

4. A hollow knuckle aving an annular groove in the .bore thereof, a ring in said groove, said rmg having its vup er. inside edge beveled and com rising a p urality of segments whereby sai ringis adapted for easy insertion in and removal from said oove, a thrust member having a conical ower portion seated on said ring, and a knuckle pin in said knuckle'.

Signed at Detroit,fMichigan, this 10th day of September, 1919.

HElBERT W. ALDEN. 

